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The Italian delicacies that Yolanda offers go beyond pizza pies. Step in to enjoy a heaping plate of their signature chicken cacciatore, a heaping portion of chicken, red peppers, Italian sausage, and baked potatoes.
As you walk along the bustling commercial corridor on E. 149th Street in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx, you can smell the sweet aroma of baking dough and fragrant garlic wafting in the air.
Follow along, and you’ll find Yolanda’s Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria, a neighborhood staple for the last 51 years where the pizza is plentiful, and the sauce is its own local legend.
Anthony Fasolino, the third generation member of a family of Italian chefs and pizza masters, is the head pizza maker at Yolanda’s. Carrying the family legacy on his shoulders appears to come easily as he handles the pizza dough with graceful, expert precision. After throwing the pie in the air, Fasolino applies gentle pressure, using his fingertips to roll and stretch out the dough. Then comes the sauce, spread thickly, as is the finishing flurry of mozzarella cheese, and into the oven it goes.
“I got another 50 years in me,” said Fasolino, going through rounds of pizza-making during the lunchtime rush, when hungry patrons stop in for a slice or two.
The staff at Yolanda’s Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria is responsible not just for cooking up delicious meals and cheese pizza, but also for making their customers feel right at home. From left to right: Christina O’Connell, Luis Cabrera, Anthony Fasolino, and Roman Saldivar.
This culinary choreography has been taking place for the past half-century, passed on through the generations. It started when Fasolino’s grandparents, Yolanda and her husband Salvatore, opened up shop in the 1960’s, just up the block from their current storefront.
Back then, the only menu item was the cheese pie, but soon, the couple began to include recipes from their own kitchen. Today, there is not just pizza with a number of toppings and serving sizes, but also Italian classics that are still prepared according to the original Yolanda and Salvatore recipes.
Among them is the chicken cacciatore, a heaping portion of chicken, red peppers, Italian sausage, and baked potatoes, drizzled in a touch of olive oil and garnished with fresh herbs that complement the savory taste of the sausage and the mild spice of the cooked peppers.
As if that weren’t filling enough, the personal pizza pie includes four slices of freshly baked pizza made with mozzarella and garnished with fresh basil. The crust, crunchy in all the right places, makes the perfect dipping tool as well.
Some things just don’t need to change, and in this case, Yolanda and Salvatore’s tomato sauce, classic, sweet and savory at once, needs no upgrading. The rich red sauce, made of California tomatoes, is one that only head chef Mateo Fasolino is allowed to make. This way, Yolanda’s ensure that the sauce is not only perfect but consistent.
Through the years, the restaurant has become not only a neighborhood institution but is also the leading pizza supplier for their next door neighbors: The New York Yankees.
It’s at Yankee Stadium where Christina O’Connell, veteran waitress at Yolanda’s with her gentle, welcoming demeanor, has met some of the Bombers.
“We cater their post-game parties, special events, and I’ve had the chance to meet some pretty cool people,” said a smiling O’Connell. O’Connell explains how she’s met all kinds of characters working at the restaurant, and has even become close friends with some of her regulars. “Here, we’re all family.”
For those who have more of a sit-down power lunch in mind, Yolanda’s also offers their dining room adjacent to the pizza counter where lawyers, doctors, nurses, and students gather to sample Yolanda’s extensive Italian menu. Patrons sit in the dining room, laptops in hand; they share lunch, conversation, homework, and school notes in the welcoming homey space.
You’ll need the strength of a Yankee to return to your schedule after this hefty meal, and even there, Yolanda obliges. There is a strong shot of espresso and a generous serving of tiramisu to see you off.
Yolanda’s Italian Restaurant and Pizzeria is located at 292 East 149th Street in the Bronx; the restaurant’s telephone number is 718.993.2709.
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